The Second District Court of Appeals in Fort Worth, Texas, has overturned the unjust voter fraud conviction and subsequent five-year imprisonment of Crystal Mason for casting a provisional ballot while on probation.
The 2016 case shed light on Mason, a Black woman, and her unawareness of her ineligibility to vote due to a prior felony conviction. This fact was pivotal in challenging the prosecution’s claim that her signing of an affidavit included awareness of her voting rights status. Justice Wade Birdwell clarified that the affidavit’s language did not conclusively prove that she intentionally violated the law (read the full ruling).
Mason’s case sparked major bipartisan concern over the severity of the sentence and pointed to a larger battle over voting rights, particularly among Black and brown communities.
Mason says she is determined to prevent similar injustices, while her legal team is heavily criticizing prosecutors’ motives as a warning to voters.
Click play to listen to the report from AURN White House Correspondent Ebony McMorris. For more news, follow @E_N_McMorris & @aurnonline.
